Members of First Nation destroyed by northwestern Ontario wildfire helped each other escape by boat, ‘Adrenalin definitely took over,’ Namaygoosisagagun First Nation resident says by Sarah Law, CBC News, Jul 16, 2026
Anishinabek Nation @AnishNation:
The Anishinabek Nation stands in solidarity with Namaygoosisagagun First Nation, which has experienced devastation from the recent wildfires, displacing all citizens from their homes and community.
In the spirit of Ngo Dwe Waangazid Anishinaabe (One Anishinaabe Family), the Anishinabek Nation is accepting donations on behalf of Namaygoosisagagun First Nation to help the community navigate through this crisis. If you are able to, please donate via e-transfer to: email hidden; JavaScript is required
Donations can also be made by credit card through PayPal or Canada Helps with further information at https://an7gc.ca/donate/
100% of donations are dedicated to supporting Namaygoosisagagun emergency response and community recovery efforts.
Other ways to help:
▪️Share this post to spread this message
▪️Offer thoughts and prayers of healing for those affected by the wildfires
▪️Reach out to surrounding food banks and inquire what support they require (i.e., food, feminine products, essential supplies, clothing, shelter, etc.)
@ClimateDefiance:
Nuremberg style trials are in order for the fossil fuel executives who knew what they were doing to our children’s futures and did anyway
@youcaughtscott.com:
That would work except Carney loves reversing climate change initiatives and damaging Canada.
@virussucks.com:
Canada should sue the US for reversing climate change initiatives and the resulting damage to Canada.
What if Canada threatened to cut oil supply to the US, due to uncontrolled climate change?
@joedmills2.bsky.social:
Time for a reminder:
Big Oil gave millions to get Trump elected
and big oil supports the Alberta separatists/Fucker Truckers
@ssteingraber1.bsky.social:
AQI = 500 in Hudson, NY = officially not safe for anyone to breathe, everyone may experience respiratory problems, it’s an emergency, no running errands, no going outside.
Your reminder that fine particulate matter from burning forests silts up your heart and your brain.
FOSSIL FUELS DID THIS
@johnmarkr.bsky.social:
Scientist friends: how many people will die prematurely because of the high levels of particulate matter in the air in North America this week?
@pammcelwee.bsky.social:
My daughter’s Girl Scout camp in NJ just cancelled their overnight camping due to poor air quality. Our kids deserve to have fun outdoors, not be punished for grownups’ failures to tackle climate change.
The Sea Gull Lake site is very close to one of the fires near Boundary Waters in Minnesota, and registered an AQI over 2000 this morning. Anything over an AQI of 300 is Hazardous — the highest level on the AQI scale.
@Conn1F:
Ignoring once again the role of American companies in forest logging and “management” for profit, as well as the changing climate caused by US oil companies in Alberta.and elsewhere in Canada, eg BC, SK, MB, Ont, Quebec, etcKeep the oil in the ground for a better future.
@virussucks.com:
Canada should sue the US for reversing climate change initiatives and the resulting damage to Canada.
What if Canada threatened to cut oil supply to the US, due to uncontrolled climate change?Much of our oil is owned by American oil companies. Trump would bomb us if we dared cut off the Americans’ cocaine supply.
@tryangregory.bsky.social:
Canada has no leg to stand on whatsoever in this regard because Carney is also reversing climate change initiatives and is pushing for more fossil fuel use.
@uvmike.bsky.social:
The obvious solution is for Canada to cut down all the forests and sell wood pellets to the UK for “green” power generation. No more forest fires, lots of power. What’s not to like? /sIf we were stupid enough to do that, Trump would also bomb us, to steal . all . the pellets.
@BadWeatherKyle:
It seems like many Americans, especially in the eastern United States, can’t wrap their minds around the sheer size and remoteness of the Canadian wild – nor the humbling size and violence of a boreal wildfire.
A teachable moment, to be sure.
@binkysmum55.bsky.social:
They obviously have not spent time in Annapolis Valley, NS, where smog from the Eastern Seaboard states, travels north and hangs in the valley. So thick at times you can’t make out the house across the street. The Valley is referred to as the “tailpipe of the Eastern Seaboard” for a reason.
@jnetty.bsky.social:
Some of the fires were sparked by lightning, some human activity, and others by ongoing dry conditions. Canada doesn’t blame other countries when disasters happen, they just sent help! That’s what good people do in time of crisis
@emmettmacfarlane.com:
How about you fix your dumpster fire of a country first, you absolute pieces of shit.
@dw2112.bsky.social:
“That attitude is unacceptable from a neighbor and an ally,” Michigan Republicans wrote.
Yet ongoing trashing, trolling, and eyeballing us from the executive office are perfectly acceptable.
@youcaughtscott.com:
They did this last year too. MAGA is going to use the forest fires to further pressure the Canadian government and even push for annexation. Thanks Carney!
@davidnich.bsky.social:
They should stop sending us their hurricanes.
@dmfox.bsky.social:
And completely ignores the Ohio-valley acid rain that fell on central Canada for decades until both countries worked together to solve the problem. …
@SilentSnow89:
Whiny little bitch crying about some smoke from Northern Ontario like half of Canada isn’t affected by it too…
And much of the other half is affected by fires in America.
@danwalker9999:
C) Where glyphosate (Roundup) has been sprayed on forests to reduce growth of deciduous trees and favour growth of commercially-valuable coniferous trees.
Deciduous trees, esp. poplar, are fire-resistant.they used to be, human pollution caused global warming is causing extreme heat, spring and summer after spring and summer, drying continents and killing many aspen.
Conifers, esp. spruce, burn like they were soaked in gasoline.
@TracyKo42161423:
Southern Alberta smokey skies today coming from a fire in Idaho.
@ryankatzrosene:
One for all the Americans who could use a good look in the mirror…
“Canadians need to manage their forests better for wildfire”
Since 1983, there have been 27 years where the US saw a greater share of its total land area burn from wildfires than Canada, and 17 years where Canada had a greater share burn than the US.
Republicans blast Canada over wildfire smoke, air quality in northern U.S., ‘American lungs are paying the price for Canadian inaction,’ say 4 members from Michigan by Mike Crawley, CBC News, Jul 16, 2026
Environment Canada issues air quality warnings as wildsmoke blankets Ontario
Duration 5:14Thick smoke has settled over much of Ontario as wildfires burn in the northwestern part of the province. Environment Canada has issued yellow and orange air quality warnings for many regions.
Social Sharing
Republican members of U.S. Congress are slamming Canada’s federal and provincial governments over what they claim is inaction in preventing the wildfires currently spreading smoke and poor air quality across much of the northeastern U.S., in addition to Central Canada.
The criticism comes in a sharply worded letter from four Michigan members of the House of Representatives, addressed to Prime Minister Mark Carney.
It accuses Canada of failing to conduct adequate forest maintenance to reduce the risk of wildfires and warns that the U.S. “will look elsewhere, and act on our own” if more action isn’t taken.What are the gross super polluting American asshats going to do? Bomb Canada’s forests and grasslands?
“This is the third consecutive year we have had to write to Canadian officials about a crisis that Canada has the tools to prevent and has chosen not to,” write the four Michigan Republicans — John James, Jack Bergman, John Moolenaar and Lisa McClain — in a letter dated Wednesday.What tools are there to stop Americans polluting the earth and atmosphere so much?
“Our hospitals are once again treating children, dialysis patients and older residents for the effects of smoke that did not originate anywhere near them.”There’s plenty fucking deadly smoke created by burning forests and cities in USA too, harming the health of Canadians, others and killing some of them. The origin of the smoke is not the source of the problem. The problem lies mostly with fucking polluting Americans and Trump massively deregulating the polluters, and law violating greedy American oil and gas companies frac’ing, sucking, polluting Canada to death.
The Republican lawmakers say they are “done accepting apologies in place of action,” and float the idea of taking cross-border fire prevention into U.S. hands.Dense assholes. Stop polluting! That’s the action that is needed; then go do fire prevention in fucking America first. We often breath the smoke from your fires.
“Sovereignty comes with responsibility, and the responsibility to prevent a foreseeable disaster from crossing into another country’s airspace has not been met,” they wrote.Dirty fuckers. Shove your threats up your evil polluting Pedo leader’s raping ass who is massively lying and quitting climate change mitigation, and deregulating America’s worst polluters!
“Our constituents are breathing the consequences of this failure right now, and they deserve better than to be told, again, that it will be handled.”Anyone with a functioning brain knows the wildfires will only get worse if we do not stop fossil fuel pollution!
More than 800 active fires
There were 858 active fires across Canada as of Thursday, according to data from the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre.
Smoke from wildfires in northwestern Ontario has been causing poor air quality and reduced visibility across for much of the southern parts of the province, according to Environment Canada.
The smoke has also triggered air quality warnings for states close to the Great Lakes, stretching from Minnesota to Maryland, with the U.S. air quality index ranging from unhealthy to hazardous.
Ontario’s forest fire officials say there are 136 active fires in the northwest region, with 63 classified as out of control. Another 44 fires are burning in the northeast.
The province has said there have been 483 fires in Ontario so far this year, up from 351 as of this time last year and above the province’s 10-year average by mid-July of 320.
Neighbouring Manitoba’s latest official figures show 137 active fires, and a total of 261 so far this year.
Wildfire challenge ‘knows no borders’: Hoekstra
The letter’s tone strikes a direct contrast with the far more collaborative way that U.S. Ambassador Pete Hoekstra has described Canada’s wildfire situation.
“This challenge knows no borders,” said Hoekstra, who also hails from Michigan, in a statement on Wednesday. “This is a shared challenge, and it demands a shared response.
- Fast-moving fires destroy homes in northern Ontario as crews fight flames
- Toronto air quality may ‘temporarily improve’ Friday, but conditions could persist into weekend
“I commend the outstanding co-operation between the United States and Canada as we confront these fires together. Our two governments are monitoring and sharing information in real time — co-ordination that reflects our partnership at its best.”
Michigan Republicans made similar complaints about Canada last summer, prompting Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew to brand them as attention seekers throwing a “timber tantrum.”
WATCH | Ontario asks Ottawa to assist with wildfire evacuations:
Ontario seeks federal help as wildfires force more evacuations
Duration 2:47Ontario has formally asked the federal government to ensure aircraft and crews could be deployed in 24 hours or less for evacuations, as wildfires continue to force people from their homes in First Nations and northern Ontario communities.
In the new letter, the Michigan Republicans criticized unnamed provincial leaders for “offering excuses instead of results” and dismissing the health concerns of Americans.I’ve never heard American politicians apologize to Canada for being one of the world’s worst polluters, if not the worst, and agent of climate chaos, and having disgusting oil and gas companies pollute in Canada. The result that is needed, is to stop burning, producing fossil fuels, and stop carbon capture which is a massively evil con job by industry to get more $billions in freebies from taxpayers. This means not only shutting down the oil and gas industry, but also the AI and data centre industry which is largely American and the fucking wars, which USA is the worst instigator of.
“That attitude is unacceptable from a neighbour and an ally,” they wrote.Well, America’s horrific fossil fuel pollution and wildfire pollution and fucking threats to take us over, are unacceptable from a neighbour and what used to be an ally. I will never consider USA an ally again; you are bad neighbours, just like Encana/Ovintiv.
‘Canada: No Excuses. Stop The Smoke’
Two of the politicians have gone even further on social media.
In a video posted to X, McClain said she has been in touch with the White House, noting that U.S. sent foresters and firefighters last year to Canada “since they aren’t really doing much.”
James, who is running for governor in Michigan, posted excerpts from the letter and added an image saying, “Canada: No Excuses. Stop The Smoke.”
Carney did not directly address the letter when asked about it by reporters on Thursday, but took a jab at the Trump administration’s climate change policies.
“Climate change is everyone’s responsibility — truly everyone’s — including the United States,” Carney said in French during a news conference in London, Ont.
He contrasted Canada’s investments in clean energy with U.S. prohibitions on clean energy, including wind power — a particular target of U.S. Donald Trump.
Another Republican blaming Canada is Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio.
Reacting to a social media post about the air quality in Cleveland, Moreno wrote: “I’ll be introducing a bill next week to sanction Canada and the responsible Canadian government officials for this atrocity.”Pointing right back smack at ya, in your Nazi face, Mr. Moreno. America has one hell of a lot of pollution to clean up. Let’s see you get started cleaning your shit up first.
Moreno did not specify what sort of sanction he has in mind.
“Canada’s government failed to invest in wildfire prevention methods including forest thinning, fuel reduction, prescribed burns, and stronger enforcement against arson,” Moreno said in a news release, directly echoing a line in the letter from his Michigan congressional colleagues.American Repuglicons listening to liar Danielle Smith? Arson is the least of the the wildfire problems, given that American oil and gas companies are the biggest and worst polluters in Canada, and that America is a much worse climate polluter than Canada, has much more polluting industry, and there are millions more Americans than Canadians driving fossil fuel polluting trucks and cars and heating their homes with fossil fuels. FFS. Americans are much more at fault for the worsening climate chaos, continental drying and subsequent worsening wildfires and smoke, than Canada is. Think of the climate pollution from USA financing Israel’s crimes against humanity and genocides and Trump’s illegal bombing of Iran and USA’s in the past elsewhere. Do/did Republicans care about the lungs of Iranians, Lebanese, Palestinians, etc? No, of course not.
Then, there’s Nazi Musk’s hideous spacex and grok, both massive climate polluters harming the health of Americans and the rest of the world, including Canadians. Besides, none of the measures listed by Moreno seem to be taking place in USA, and not a one will stop the ravages of fossil fuel pollution. Worsening wildfire is but one dire consequence of many caused by human greed, over population and pollution.
@baja-hacker.bsky.social:
Republicans just LOVE giving subsidies to oil companies . . .
@DougJBalloon:
I can’t breathe the air, I can’t eat lettuce, I can’t afford gas, and my kids have measles. But at least now our soldiers will have enough testosterone.
Why not make your pipeline announcement with this video playing in the background? At least you would be honest for a change.
@leeram.bsky.social:
Doug Ford and Mark Carney…posted about pipelines today.
While Prime Minister Full-Speed-Ahead-On-Climate-Arson-Without-Even-Pretending-To-Care-About-Our-Climate-Obligations eliminates our already weak climate targets, Toronto has the very worst air quality on Earth today due to climate-worsened extreme wildfires.
Canada’s PM’s fierce determination to appease separatists & fatten short term foreign fossil fuel shareholder profits with a pipeline is going to come with a huge body count.
It’s anti-leadership. Deliberate failure on the climate is the most irresponsible policy choice in all of human history. and worse, Herr Worse-than-Harper Carney knows it.
IPCC science tells us ANY new pipelines or fossil fuel expansion guarantees that the Paris Agreement climate goals can never be met & the world cannot possibly avoid the very worst climate scenarios.
Also that carbon capture is a problem rather than a solution.
Whenever you remember that the PM said meeting what were already pathetically low climate targets would be “too expensive,” ask yourself how expensive it will feel when escalating climate impacts cut all of global GDP in half.
actuaries.org.uk/media/qeydew…
…
In the face of growing wildfire risks, Mark Carney has cut funding for tracking wildfire risks.
Because when you’re deliberately worsening a gigantic public risk, the very best way to follow that up is by also reducing the public capacity to reduce that risk.
Carney seems to have a fetish for making climate harms as big as he possibly can.
www.nationalobserver.com/2025/12/05/n…
…
Stop pretending that only one party is responsible for making us more vulnerable to wildfire risks. The escalating danger we are in is a multi-party effort. NONE of Canada’s major political parties has thus far taken this increasing risk seriously.
Here we see Doug Ford cutting funding at Ontario’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, with by far the biggest cuts coming from the Emergency Forest Firefighting budget. While fire risks went up. It’s awful anti-leadership, but it he’s hardly the only one.
Provincial budget cuts hit MNRF hard – Ontario Out of Doors
The Ford government’s provincial budget, released on April 11, has reduced the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry’s budget by $161.7 million…oodmag.com
No one at all should be surprised to see that Alberta’s Danielle Smith, and Jason Kenney before her, both similarly took an axe to the budget aimed at protecting Alberta from wildfires.
Alberta’s UCP Government Has Cut Tens of Millions of Dollars From Wildfire Preparedness Programs
Danielle Smith is promising a ‘more nimble’ response to wildfirespressprogress.ca
The only problem with the completely appropriate anger aimed at them for doing so is the partisan fiction that this is something *only* Conservatives or UCP do. Alberta’s only NDP government ALSO cut the province’s wildfire fighting budget. An NDP government.
Alberta Premier Rachel Notley defends cut in wildfire budget
The government says it’s committed to fighting wildfires in Alberta.edmontonjournal.com
Mark Carney’s made deep cuts to Natural Resources Canada that strip away science-based expertise on forest fires, “decimating capacity” to track wildfire activity. Only one forest pathologist now monitors the entire forestry system east of the Rockies.
Cuts at Natural Resources Canada ‘decimate’ wildfire and flood tracking capacity, unions warn
Carney’s cuts have hit Natural Resources Canada, causing uproar from public sector unions warning the layoffs will hurt Canada’s ability to respond to cliamte change and protect Canadians from wildfir…www.nationalobserver.com
Troubling cuts to Natural Resources are a pittance next to Carney cutting the total budget for Environment & Climate Change Canada roughly in HALF, devastating Canada’s management of not only wildfire risks but also flooding & other climate impact risks. IN HALF.
2026–27 Estimates – Canada.cawww.canada.ca
NO government in Canada is the hero here. NONE of these people is taking Canada’s increasing wildfire risks remotely seriously.
@strawbbjam.bsky.social:
who up crying bc all of canada is on fire and the animals are probably so scared and don’t know what’s going on and my heart just hurts bro
@nottodisappear.bsky.social:
Will a mask even help with THIS MUCH SMOKE? It looks like you’re trapped inside a house fire in NYC!
@madgreek2024.bsky.social:
You’ll need a N95 mask. But it’s better not to go out at all if you can.
@millicentlake.bsky.social:
Imagine being a bird or animal with zero recourse. Or a newborn nesting creature.
@internethuman.bsky.social:
AQI is >400 today where I’m at. I’m hesitant to even let my dog outside to pee, I’m not going out without the same mask combo I used during the peak of covid.
I see birds flying, squirrels running around and I cant help but wonder about the damage to their tiny lungs.
@uncommon-grackle.bsky.social:
Here in metro Detroit, we’re at 469 right now. I got back from running errands — masked outside but not in my car — and I’ve been lightly coughing since I got back.
@internethuman.bsky.social:
Also saw a dude running down the street shirtless and unmasked… which really baffled me. Like do you care about your health or not?
@classicnal.bsky.social:
‘m in western NY, and it’s bad even indoors. I have a headache, stomach ache, dry eyes, and a runny nose. Homes are not hermetically sealed, so it does get in through tiny cracks, crevices, outside vents. It gets inside cars too.
@thankgod4ever.bsky.social:
it’s really bad today where I live. can’t go outside or have the windows open. smells terrible and hard to breathe
@drted77.bsky.social:
I’m just so gosh darn happy that our governments have decided that having a viable living environment is too expensive to maintain. Yeah, let’s just burn it all to the ground!
Such scenes are playing out all over Canada, so if you complain of firesmoke — absolutely understandable; it is an apocalyptic hellscape — please be mindful you are literally surrounded by the ashes of other people’s lives and dreams. It, too, is an unthinkable horror. It’s all so wrong.
Castanet.net @castanet.net:
Town site of Boston Bar, B.C., ordered to evacuate as wildfire flares #Kamloops
Town site of Boston Bar, B.C., ordered to evacuate as wildfire flares – Kamloops News
Residents of Boston Bar have been ordered to evacuate due to a wildfire that flared overnight.www.castanet.net
In case I’m being subtle: “Blaming Canada” for firesmoke is an asshole move. Obviously we didn’t go, KNOW WHAT WE WANT FOR SUMMER? CANADA GOING UP IN FLAMES. So, there are a lot of American comments that are pissing us off. (Luckily, lotsa nice Americans are donating to Red Cross, too. We ♥️ you.)
Cindy Bloom @cbloom57.bsky.social:
Za Lord of the Rings of Fires of Heaven @angeloleary.bsky.social:
Seriously, the blame falls on climate change deniers. If anyone is going to complain, go to the root source. These fires are tragic, lives destroyed. The consequences of these fires are lasting and far-flung.
curiouskittyk.bsky.social @curiouskittyk.bsky.social:
There’s a name for this man made climate change. All of this is knowable, the sad part is on the trajectory we are on we will look upon this as one of the better years. Yet, drill baby, drill. For some reason we seem unable to break free of our addiction to mindless consumption and fossil fuels.
@chitownstrong.bsky.social:
It’s bonkers to me that the sunrise is not even visible…
@votebiue.bsky.social:
Yeah it’s like Science Fiction.
@curiouskittyk.bsky.social:
I’m afraid this IS the new NORMAL !
Yet we ignore the cause
Fires in #Canada 2026 #Wildfires
30 new reported fires today
858 active across the country
2,692 now out
Total 3,550
Area burned (ha) 2,389,061
Link here cwfis.cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/en/
Columnist Wildfire Smoke Can Hurt You in Surprising Ways, Scientists are making connections between burning forests and a host of health problems, from dementia to premature birth. by Lisa Jarvis, Aug 26, 2024, Bloomberg
Lisa Jarvis is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering biotech, health care and the pharmaceutical industry. Previously, she was executive editor of Chemical & Engineering News.
Just don’t inhale. Photographer: Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images
Spring and summer in the US now come with a new normal: days and even weeks where the acrid overhang of wildfire smoke forces us indoors. At its worst, not even shuttered windows can protect us from its effects — the stinging eyes, runny noses and burning lungs.
As the Earth’s climate warms, wildfires tear through a larger swath of land each year. As my Bloomberg Opinion colleague Mark Gongloff has explained, in some parts of the US, the fire season now stretches a month longer than in 1973. These more intense, longer wildfire seasons are pushing this specific brand of pollution into parts of the country not accustomed to orange skies and unbreathable air.
That’s compromising our health — not just when the smoke is thick, but for years after. Researchers are increasingly recognizing that wildfire smoke can bring health problems wherever it drifts.
Many of the near-term problems with wildfire smoke exposure are by now well understood.
The most serious, of course, is death. A recent working paper for the National Bureau of Economic Research estimated that the US would see nearly 28,000 more deaths each year by 2050 due to the climate-driven rise in wildfire smoke — that’s 76% higher than the average annual deaths between 2011 and 2020.
It’s Getting Harder to Breathe in the US
Cumulative wildfire smoke exposure per person
Each line adds up daily exposure to smoke-related PM2.5 pollution for the average person in the US.
Source: Stanford Environmental Change and Human Outcomes Lab
More of us experience milder but still serious consequences, like worsening asthma and debilitating headaches. When smoke from Canadian wildfires wafted thousands of miles to hang over large tracts of the US last summer, it led to a 17% rise in asthma-related ER visits, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
More recently, less-obvious health issues have come to light. Multiple studies have found a connection between wildfire smoke and pregnancy complications, including preeclampsia (a form of dangerously high blood pressure) and premature births.
But unraveling the long-term health effects has been trickier. For much of the year, we aren’t exposed to any wildfire smoke, and then it can suddenly surge. “How the human body handles that and what the long-term repercussions are remain very understudied and somewhat unknown,” says Joan Casey, an environmental epidemiologist at the University of Washington.
And of course, we’re also exposed to other forms of air pollution that affect our health. Separating the impact of wildfire smoke from that of other pollutants has been challenging. One problem is that most air-quality monitors are in cities, creating a frustrating information gap for researchers. “We have these huge, rural areas where we really don’t know what the air quality is like — and that’s where people are often most exposed to wildfires,” Casey says.
Ideally, researchers trying to unravel the health impacts of wildfire smoke want to understand how often someone was exposed to the smallest particles, known as PM2.5, how intense the exposure was, and how many days it lasted. And then they’d want to follow them over time and compare to them to a similar group that has had the advantage of a smoke-free environment.
But nothing is ever that cut and dried in the real world. For example, wildland firefighters are an obvious choice, but less obvious is who they should be compared to, says Marshall Burke, deputy director of Stanford University’s Center on Food Security and the Environment. They could be compared to regular firefighters, but the two groups also might make lifestyle choices — take more risks or be more outdoorsy, for example — that could factor into their long-term health. Researchers can try to control for those differences, but “that’s really hard to do in a convincing way,” Burke says. Another limitation is that wildland firefighters, overwhelmingly White and male, don’t represent the US population at large
Nevertheless, researchers are finding creative ways to disentangle the effects of wildfire smoke from those of other pollutants. Recent work led by Casey, for example, linked geographical information to a decade of insurance data for some 1.2 million Californians over the age of 60. That allowed researchers to estimate how much of their PM2.5 exposure came from wildfire smoke compared to other forms of pollution. They found inhaling wildfire smoke raised the risk of dementia — a risk exacerbated by someone’s poverty level.
The best information would come from tracking people exposed to wildfire smoke over time. An ambitious project in Hawaii is studying people living near the wildfires that devastated parts of Maui in 2023. This kind of prospective study will take time to get answers, and also faces a challenge: it needs long-term, sustainable funding to keep tabs on people for decades.
While we wait for better data, the bottom line is that longer, more extreme wildfire seasons that blanket the country in smoke are bad for our health — in both the short and long run.
“Everything we found in our work, consistent with other work on air pollution more broadly, is that there’s no safe exposure. The more you get, the worse the outcome is,” Burke says.
So yes, we must more aggressively fight climate change. But we also have to help people mitigate the effects of smoke right now. Here, lessons from the pandemic can be reinforced. Wearing a high quality mask can greatly reduce your exposure outside. But we also need to pay much more attention to air quality where we spend most of our time: indoors. Investing in HEPA filtration for schools, workplaces and homes may be our best chance to give our lungs respite from the smoke.
